School board seeks to own student, teacher created materials

[The Night Owl]

From the Washington Post:

A proposal by the Prince George’s County Board of Education to copyright work created by staff and students for school could mean that a picture drawn by a first-grader, a lesson plan developed by a teacher or an app created by a teen would belong to the school system, not the individual.

What do you think of this proposal?

I know that if you are an employee of a company, anything you create as part of doing your job for that company is considered their property.

However, this has never been the case in education. Should it be? (Personally, I'm not a fan. It seems as if the school board is trying to get a bigger piece of the pie, so to speak...)

[chebrutta]

Not a fan. First, I've already had trouble with my lessons being used in lower grades. Second, what about the kid who enters an art or writing contest ands wins a cast prize? Does the school district get the money?

[callmebob]

Originally Posted by The Night Owl

From the Washington Post:



What do you think of this proposal?

I know that if you are an employee of a company, anything you create as part of doing your job for that company is considered their property.

However, this has never been the case in education. Should it be? (Personally, I'm not a fan. It seems as if the school board is trying to get a bigger piece of the pie, so to speak...)

The difference between the company owning the rights and a school district owning them is that when you work for a company you are doing tasks to benefit them. In education; it is about doing tasks to benefit the students (or so we say). And the student work, they are not "owned" or employed by a school, this should have no merit.

[TeacherGroupie]

Unknown in K-12, maybe, but increasingly standard in universities: I know of at least one system whose contract with adjuncts specifies that the rights to all works created while one teaches a course belong to the university.

[czacza]

I think it stifles creativity.

[JustMe]

Originally Posted by The Night Owl

What do you think of this proposal?

So stupid.

[The Night Owl]

Originally Posted by czacza

I think it stifles creativity.

This is exactly what I was thinking.

[TeacherGroupie]

Originally Posted by frstrtdteacher

I like to read the proposal before I demonize it

frstrtdteacher, what do you intend by this?

[JustMe]

Originally Posted by frstrtdteacher

I like to read the proposal before I demonize it

From the article: "Board Chair Verjeana M. Jacobs (District 5) said she and Vice Chair Carolyn M. Boston (District 6) attended an Apple presentation and learned how teachers can use apps to create new curricula. The proposal was designed to make it clear who owns teacher-developed curricula created while using apps on iPads that are school property, Jacobs said."

When a district is spending time trying to collect on things I designed for my classroom and students using their precious iPad, well, it's time I look elswhere. That's just absurd.

[Caesar753]

If this happened in my district, I just wouldn't create anything for my students. We'd only use materials that were created by the textbook company. Sad, probably not what's best for students, but necessary.